Big Grove Brewery’s Big Grove For Good Foundation recently donated a total of $12,000 to food banks while the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, was not being funded due to the government shutdown. The three food banks receiving the donation were Eastern Iowa’s Hawkeye Area Community Action Program, the Food Bank of Iowa, and the Food Bank for the Heartland. Each organization was given $4,000. Mikala Demet, the executive director for Big Grove For Good, said the foundation was planning on donating money in December, but decided to advance the donation to help “meet community needs.” “Food banks can stretch that money so much further than maybe you or me going to the grocery store,” she said. “Our biggest hope is that money is used to feed as many people as possible.” Demet also said the donations weren’t just about the money, but about bringing awareness to issues within the community, showing continued advocacy and support through hardship. “Just because the people are getting their benefits back doesn’t mean everything’s automatically in a good place,” she said. SNAP benefits have been reinstated for the roughly 41. 7 million Americans who use the program each month, a number tallied by the USDA Economic Research Service. According to AP News, however, SNAP users will now have to abide by new work requirements, and participants will receive December benefits on their normal schedule. The foundation is organized as a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit, with Big Grove Brewery being its main donor. Demet said the brewery’s involvement with the community dates back further than the foundation, and the founders of the brewery have been involved since it started in Solon, Iowa. Demet said the foundation has a set of core giving areas: trees, trails, and water; equity and equality; and our backyard, and as Big Grove Brewery has continued to grow, these values are on which the foundation has centralized its focus. RELATED: Big Grove Brewery unveils fundraising beer for Iowa Legal Aid “We try to really listen to our staff, to our customers, about what they care about in their communities and go from there,” Demet said. The foundation’s board of directors makes the decisions on where it allocates donations. The foundation’s 2025 nonprofit grant partners are The Beacon, Iowa City Free Medical and Dental Clinic, Iowa Valley Resource Conservation and Development, Central Furniture Rescue, Monarch Research, and Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice. The foundation previously donated $48,000 to these organizations, with each getting $8,000. Jason Grimm, executive director of Iowa Valley Resource Conservation and Development, said they applied for the funding and had members of the foundation’s committee reach out to them. “It’s just really great for them to recognize the need for food access and the increasing food insecurity,” Grimm said. “But also just commitment to sustainable and regenerative growing practices our program uses on our farm, as well.” Grimm said Big Grove Brewery is involved with Iowa Valley Resource Conservation and Development not just at the monetary level. They provided the space for the nonprofit to hold a celebration of its 10th year and had several of the brewery’s employees volunteer for the Conservation and Development nonprofit. Heather Dewey Wagner, executive director of the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy, shared a similar experience with Big Grove Brewery. According to its website, the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy’s mission is to promote arts equity and inclusivity. The academy was one of six nonprofits to receive a grant from Big Grove in 2024. “I don’t know how many hundreds of people apply, but we were just lucky enough to have been chosen, and it couldn’t have come at a better time,” Wagner said. “We were getting ready to move into a new building, and we were really needing some assistance from the community. I could not have been happier with the amount of support that they gave us that year.” Wagner said it was incredible to have Big Grove Brewery show support for its mission and for the children the arts academy works to provide for. The academy has a youth rock band program, and Wagner said the brewery immediately stepped in to help with them. On top of the grant money, Big Grove has hosted bands, held an art show with the academy, and had employees volunteer at several academy events. “They were just incredibly generous, and having them there to support us just felt so nice because they’re a bigger name in our community,” Wagner said. “Especially for the kids, to know that, ‘Oh wow, Big Grove likes us.’” Wagner said Big Grove was able to build a relationship with the academy, as they immediately jumped into planning meetings for ways to enhance their partnership. Wagner said because of the personal relationships formed, Wagner and her team can reach out to Big Grove at any time. “The most important thing, really, is the fact that it doesn’t end when it’s over,” Wagner said. On top of the recent donations made in place of SNAP, Big Grove Brewery’s Iowa City location will be having a Dine Out and Donate on Thursday, Nov. 20. In honor of national hunger and homelessness awareness week, 10 percent of the sales from that night will go to local organizations. “We love when our local teams seek what they want to do and help support,” Demet said. “With everything going on, we wanted to spread the love.”.
https://dailyiowan.com/2025/11/19/big-grove-for-good-foundation-donates-to-food-banks-community-organizations/